Quotes

"Ingredients are magical, the way their texture transforms after you cook them, they are most integral to food. I love cooking vegetables, though not so much eating them.”

Viraf Patel, chef, Upper Crust, April-June 2025

"‘India and China buy 70% of (Russian dictator Vladimir) Putin’s oil,’
(US Senator Lindsay) Graham said, accusing them of fueling Russia’s war machine while avoiding 
support for Ukraine.”

The Free Press Journal, July 2, 2025

"The race course (in Bombay) is intended exclusively for horse racing and its
 maintenance. The push for additional
 Floor Space Index amounts to blatant
 exploitation of valuable public land.”

Zoru Bhathena, environmental activist, criticizing the proposal of the Royal Western India Turf Club to build a new clubhouse and banquet hall at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse,
The Free Press Journal, July 2, 2025

"Work on your craft. Don’t say, 
‘I want to become an actor, I went for auditions.’ That you have to do. But what did you bring to the auditions?  What training did you go through? You went to drama school, and even if you didn’t go, what did you do in self-training? Which pictures did you watch? Which acting books did you read? How much have you rehearsed? If you don’t rehearse 
and say that you look beautiful 
and will get a job — that’s it, you 
will always be heartbroken. So, this is what I am saying: make your own luck. Don’t expect Bollywood 
to do anything for you.”

Boman Irani, actor, MumbaiMirror, June 21, 2025

"When Indian wicketkeeper-batter 
Rishabh Pant was brought into the hospital in Bombay, Pant’s first 
question was ‘Am I ever going to be able to play again?’ His mother though, more practical, asked the surgeon: ‘Is he ever going 
to be able to walk again?’”

Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala, orthopedic surgeon, The Free Press Journal, June 30, 2025

"In 2024, religious freedom 
conditions in India continued to deteriorate as attacks and 
discrimination against religious minorities continued to rise. 
Prior to national elections in June, Bharatiya Janata Party members, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, propagated hateful rhetoric and disinformation against Muslims and other religious minorities to gather political support.”

Extract from the United States Commission 
on International Religious Freedom, 
2025 Annual Report 

"Automaker valuations are admittedly often somewhat mystifying — Ferrari builds fewer than 14,000 cars a year but is worth more than Volkswagen, which sells almost nine 
million vehicles annually.”

Chris Bryant, Berlin-based business 
columnist, Bloomberg, reprinted in The 
Financial Express, April 2, 2025